VARIOUS PASTORS, TEACHERS, PROFESSORS, AND COMMENTARIES ON THE SUBJECT OF THE THREE TENSES OF SALVATION

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1 VARIOUS PASTORS, TEACHERS, PROFESSORS, AND COMMENTARIES ON THE SUBJECT OF THE THREE TENSES OF SALVATION Dr. Norman Geisler - Salvation does not end with a single act of justification; this is only the first stage, by which one is saved from the penalty of sin. Salvation also involves a lifelong process of sanctification, by which we are saved from the power of sin. At death, our redemption climaxes with an act of glorification that saves us from the very presence of sin. At this point we will see God face-to-face (in the Beatific Vision) and become like Him, for then we shall see Him as He is. 1 Dr. Earl Radmacher - The New Testament speaks of salvation in the past tense (Eph. 2:8), the present tense (2 Cor. 2:15), and the future tense (13:11). In the past, the believer has been saved from the penalty of sin. In the present, the believer is being saved from the power of sin. In the future, the believer will be saved from the very presence of sin (see Matt. 5:10 12; 8:17; 2 Cor. 5:10; 2 Tim. 2:11 13; Rev. 22:12). 2 Nelson s Bible Commentary - The salvation that comes through Christ may be described in three tenses: past, present, and future. When people believe in Christ, they are saved (Acts 16:31). But we are also in the process of being saved from the power of sin (Rom. 8:13; Phil. 2:12). Finally, we shall be saved from the very presence of sin (Rom. 13:11; Titus 2:12 13). God releases into our lives today the power of Christ s resurrection (Rom. 6:4) and allows us a foretaste of our future life as His children (2 Cor. 1:22; Eph. 1:14). Our experience of salvation will be complete when Christ returns (Heb. 9:28) and the kingdom of God is fully revealed (Matt. 13:41 43). 3 The ESV Study Bible - God s plan is to save his people from their sins and to bring his people fully and finally to himself (Matt. 1:21; 2 Tim. 2:10). Christians experience salvation in this life in both a past and present sense, and we anticipate salvation in a future sense. Christians have been saved from the penalty of our sins; we are currently being saved from the power of sin; and one day, when God s plan of salvation is completed and we are with Christ, we shall be like him, and we shall be saved even from the very presence of sin. This is God s plan of salvation. 4 Dr. Charles Ryrie -The inclusive sweep of salvation is underscored by observing the three tenses of salvation. (1) The moment one believed he was saved from the condemnation of sin (Eph. 2:8; Titus 3:5). (2) That believer is also being saved from the dominion of sin and is being sanctified and preserved (Heb. 7:25). (3) And he will be saved from the very presence of sin in heaven forever (Rom. 5:9 10). 5 1 Norman L. Geisler, Systematic Theology, Volume Three: Sin, Salvation (Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House Publishers, 2004), Earl D. Radmacher, Ronald Barclay Allen, and H. Wayne House, The Nelson Study Bible: New King James Version (Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers, 1997), Ro 1:16. 3 Ronald F. Youngblood, F. F. Bruce, and R. K. Harrison, Thomas Nelson Publishers, eds., Nelson s New Illustrated Bible Dictionary (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, Inc., 1995). 4 Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), Charles Caldwell Ryrie, Basic Theology: A Popular Systematic Guide to Understanding Biblical Truth (Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1999),

2 New Dictionary of Biblical Theology- God s salvation encompasses the past, the present, and the future. Past deliverance points forward to present and future deliverance, which in turn look back to and are based on past deliverance. 6 The New American Commentary - Three tenses of salvation can be discerned in the New Testament: Christians have been saved, are being saved, and one day shall be saved. The later eschatological sense of full, final, and complete salvation in the sense of deliverance from all sin and punishment is in view here. The author of Hebrews characteristically sees salvation more from a futuristic perspective as that which God will ultimately confer on his people. Ellingworth correctly noted sōtēria is one of those nouns that has embedded within it two possible semantic aspects. It may mean the act or state of being saved (the predominant sense in the New Testament), or it could mean the message about salvation, which best fits the context and its use in Heb 6:9. 7 Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society - It is common in many Christian circles to speak of the tenses of salvation as a way of helping us to understand three uses of the terms salvation and save in Scripture. The past tense of salvation speaks of our deliverance from the penalty of sin. The present tense of salvation is our deliverance from the power of sin. And the future tense of salvation is our deliverance from the presence of sin. Romans 13:11 can be easily identified as the future tense of salvation. From the perspective of Romans, it may be beneficial to conceive of salvation in each context as a victory over the power of sin. Sometimes it refers to a positional victory over its enslavement, sometimes a present experience of victory over sin s power, and finally the complete victory over every aspect of its power at the resurrection. 8 Donald Grey Barnhouse - OUR THREEFOLD SALVATION Let us look at passages which mention all three phases, beginning with Hebrews 9: Verse 25 tells us that Christ has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. That was His work on Calvary. Verse 24 says that Christ entered Heaven now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. Now He is our Priest and Advocate. Finally, since it is appointed for men to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear, a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him (verses 27 28). Then we shall be like him (1 John 3:2). The three tenses of salvation were taught by Paul to the believers at Thessalonica. Reviewing their spiritual history, he says, You turned to God from idols [past], to serve a living and true God, [present] and to wait for his Son from heaven, the anticipation of salvation yet to be accomplished (1 Thess. 1:10). Peter also groups these three phases of salvation in one wonderful sentence. He reminds his readers that we have been born anew through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead (1 Pet. 1:3); we by God s power are guarded through faith, even though our entire Christian life may be a fiery trial. The future, however, is as bright as the promises of God, for past redemption and present protection are to the end that we enter into salvation ready to be revealed in the last time (1 Pet. 1:5). This is the salvation that is nearer to us than when we first believed. Our past tense salvation is justification provided for us by God through the death of the Lord Jesus Christ. This salvation was God in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself. Christ described it in the moment of His dying by saying, It is finished (John 19:30). Our present tense salvation is sanctification. It is the work of God for us through the Holy Spirit. Now it is comfort in time of sorrow, consolation in time of bereavement, strength 6 T. Desmond Alexander and Brian S. Rosner, eds., New Dictionary of Biblical Theology (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2000). 7 David L. Allen, Hebrews (The New American Commentary; Nashville, TN: B & H Publishing Group, 2010), Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society 12, no. 2 (1999):

3 in time of weakness, forgiveness in time of sin, and grace for every need. Our future tense salvation is glorification, and of this our text speaks. Now our salvation is nearer to us than when we first believed. There are two aspects of future salvation, although I shall confine myself to the discussion of only one. In passing, however, let us note that human society will one day be sinless. This state will be achieved not by education, science, or political manipulation, but by the power of the Lord Jesus Christ when He comes again. However, our primary consideration here is the future salvation of believers. Since God deals with the whole man, we shall discuss the future of our threefold being: physical, mental, and spiritual. 9 Warren W. Wiersbe So, in one sense, we have the three tenses of salvation given here: we have been saved from the penalty of sin (righteousness); we are being saved from the power of sin (sanctification); and we shall be saved from the presence of sin (redemption). And every believer has all of these blessings in Jesus Christ! 10 Did you notice that the word appear is used three times in Hebrews 9:24 28? These three uses give us a summary of our Lord s work. He has appeared to put away sin by dying on the cross (Heb. 9:26). He is appearing now in heaven for us (Heb. 9:24). One day, He shall appear to take Christians home (Heb. 9:28). These three tenses of salvation are all based on His finished work. 11 Believer s Bible Commentary It has often been pointed out that there are three tenses of salvation: (1) A Christian was saved from the penalty of sin the moment he first trusted the Savior (Eph. 2:8). (2) He is saved daily from the power of sin as he allows the Savior to live His life through him (Rom. 5:10). (3) He will be saved from the presence of sin at the time of the Rapture (Heb. 9:28). His body will be changed and glorified, and be forever free from sin, sickness, and death. This future tense of salvation also includes the time when the saints will return to earth with Christ and will be clearly shown to be children of God (1 Jn. 3:2). 12 J. Vernon McGee on the Three Tenses of Salvation Salvation comes in three tenses. (1) We have been saved. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath [right now] everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life (John 5:24). That means that God has delivered us from the guilt of sin by the death of Christ. That is justification, and it is past tense. (2) God has also delivered us from what the old theologians called the pollution of sin, which is present deliverance. We are being saved. It is a deliverance from the weaknesses of the flesh, the sins of the flesh, the faults of the mind, and the actions of the will. This is the present deliverance that Hannah is talking about. It is sanctification and is in the present tense. (3) Finally there is the deliverance from death in the future not physical, but spiritual death. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is (1 John 3:2). This is a future deliverance. We shall be saved. 9 Donald Grey Barnhouse, God s Discipline: Romans 12:1 14:12 (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1964), Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary (vol. 1; Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary (vol. 2; Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), William MacDonald, Believer s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments (ed. Arthur Farstad; Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1995), 2252.

4 That will be glorification, which is future tense. We have been saved, we are being saved, and we will be saved. Hannah was rejoicing in her salvation. 13 Clarence Larkin Rightly Dividing The Word Salvation is a threefold process. It begins in Justification, proceeds through Sanctification, and ends in Glorification. Titus 2: So we can say that we are saved, that we are being saved, and that we will be saved. 1. We are saved from the PENALTY of Sin - This we get by Faith. Faith leads to our JUSTIFICATION. Therefore being JUSTIFIED BY FAITH, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Rom. 5:1. The word Justification is a legal term and means to declare not guilty. It can best be defined by an illustration. We will suppose that a man has been charged with murder and tried and found guilty and been sentenced to die. Before the hour of execution a man appears at the prison and asks to see the Sheriff, to whom he hands an official document, which when the Sheriff reads he finds to be a pardon. The man at once is set at liberty and walks out of the prison a free man, but not a justified man for the guilt of the crime still remains on him. He is simply a pardoned CRIMINAL. On the other hand we will suppose that the condemned criminal was really innocent, having been condemned on circumstantial evidence, and that before the date set for execution the real murderer surrenders himself to the Sheriff and produces evidence that he is the real criminal. What then must the Sheriff do? He cannot any longer hold the first man, for he is not guilty, he therefore sets him free, and he walks out of the prison a JUSTIFIED man because he is innocent of the crime charged against him. That is the legal meaning of Justification and that is the Scriptural meaning. Here is the Mystery of Salvation. It would be impossible for an innocent man to satisfy the law, for while he might take the criminal s place he could not take his GUILT. But this is what Jesus Christ does. He hath made Him to be SIN FOR US, who know no sin: that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. 2 Cor. 5:21. The moment a sinner accepts by faith the Lord Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour he is JUSTIFIED. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and BELIEVETH on Him that sent me, HATH EVERLASTING LIFE, and shall not come into condemnation (Judgment), but IS PASSED from death unto life. John 5:24. The result of Justification is that we have peace WITH God. Rom. 5:1. We must distinguish between peace WITH God, and the peace OF God. Phil. 4:7. Here an illustration will best serve our purpose. We will suppose that during the Civil War President Lincoln had issued a proclamation that any person in rebellion against the Government would be pardoned the moment that, coming from the South, he should step over the Mason and Dixon Line. Suppose such a person had crossed the line at 12 o clock midnight unknown to himself, at once he would have been at peace WITH the Government, but not knowing that he had crossed the line he continued on in fear of arrest and imprisonment until, as the day began to dawn, he realized that for hours he had been safe. What joy and peace of mind would then fill his soul. So the very moment we accept with saving faith the Lord Jesus Christ as our Saviour we have peace WITH God, but it may be days, weeks, and even years before we know this, and have the peace OF God that passeth all understanding We are saved from the POWER of Sin - When the angel announced to Joseph that Mary was to have a son, he said Thou shalt call his name JESUS; for He shall save His people from their SINS. Matt. 1:21. So we see that Jesus is not only a Saviour from SIN, but also from SINS. From our daily besetting, or as the colored preacher said, upsetting sins. Writing to the Philippians Paul said Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is GOD WHICH WORKETH IN YOU both to WILL and to DO of His good pleasure. Phil. 2: Now this does not mean that we are to be saved by our works. It means that having received Salvation through faith we are to now work it out. That is, having been saved from the Penalty of Sin, we 13 J. Vernon McGee, Thru the Bible Commentary: History of Israel (1 and 2 Samuel) (vol. 12, electronic ed.; Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1991),

5 must work to be delivered from its Power. And in this, though we do it with fear and trembling, conscious of our own weakness, we will be aided by God, for it is God who worketh in us, to WILL and DO of His good pleasure. What we need to do then is to co-operate with God in His work of Sanctification, to let Him will and do in us what is necessary to save us from the Power of Sin. The revelation of sin is progressive. It is not until after conversion that we really begin to realize what sin is. When you awake in the morning twilight you see a few conspicuous articles of furniture. As the light increases you see taking form the pictures on the wall and the toilet articles on the dressing table; but it is not until the sun is up that you see smaller articles as pins, pieces of thread and particles of dust. When we came to Christ we were conscious of a few sinful habits. We gave them up. But as we grew in grace other things in our lives were seen as wrong and laid aside. And so it has gone on. Things that we did five years ago we would not do today, and what we do today, we will not do five years from now. Writing to the Corinthians eighteen years after his conversion, Paul said I am not meet to be called an Apostle. 1 Cor. 15:9. Six years later he wrote to the Ephesians I am less than the least of all saints. Eph. 3:8. And five years later he wrote to Timothy I am the chief of sinners. 1 Tim. 1:15. What was the matter with Paul? Had he grown worse? No, he only realized more than ever his own sinfulness. Paul never professed complete sanctification. He said that he was not already perfect or had attained unto that for which he had been apprehended by Christ, but he was reaching forth and pressing toward the mark. Phil. 3: From this we see that Sanctification is a progressive act, and that our complete deliverance from the Power of Sin will not be until the death of the body, though we may have to a large extent Victory over Sin if we surrender absolutely to the Will of God, and permit Him to will and to do of His good pleasure in us. 3. We are to be saved from the PRESENCE of Sin - Jesus died on the Cross to save our soul from death, He is coming back to complete our salvation by redeeming our body from the grave, or to change it into an immortal body at the Rapture. Not until then shall we be saved from the Presence of Sin. So we see that Salvation is a threefold process. That it begins in Justification and ends in Glorification. Justification being instant and complete deliverance from the Penalty of Sin; Sanctification being a progressive deliverance from the Power of Sin, and Glorification our final deliverance from the Presence of Sin Clarence Larkin, Rightly Dividing the Word (Philadelphia, PA: Clarence Larkin, 1921), 189.